Knights of the Old Republic: The Endar Spire
by Little Bassoonist
Summary: The typical Knights of the Old Republic fanfic. Something of a pilot. If I like this, I might write more.


Landon Locke awoke with a jerk. He tumbled from his humble cot and rolled onto the cold, metallic floor of the _Endar Spire_. Through blurry vision, he made out the fuzzy face of a soldier standing above him. Just as his eyes focused on the person's face, white light pierced his dormitory from the window and the ship rocked to the side with a jolt. The figure, too, stumbled, joining Landon on the chilled floor. He caught a long look at his appearance—blond hair cropped short, leathery skin turned tan from working under many suns, firm muscles under an orange military uniform. He was a Republic soldier, one he had never seen before.

The two men awkwardly rose to their feet.

"You finally woke up, good," the new man said. "We have to get out of here."

"Who _are_ you?" Landon wondered, still dazed.

"Trask Ulgo, at your service. We're bunkmates, but we run opposite shifts. I guess that's why we haven't met yet. That's not important, though. We have to get out so we can save Bastilla."

Landon vaguely remembered his mission aboard the_ Endar Spire_ and his obligation to keep the Jedi safe. The ship jolted forward a second time with the sound of metal caving in, and all feelings of loyalty vanished.

"Forget it, man. I don't need any Jedi."

Trask clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes. "You swore an _oath_, Locke. I know you're just a scout, not a soldier, but that doesn't mean you can give up on what you stand for. If you want to find your way off this ship—" shrieks echoed from down a hallway and smoke crept under the door, as if to make his point "—you'll need my help. And if you want my help, your first priority has to be Bastilla."

Weighing his options, Landon sighed and reluctantly nodded his head. "Fine. Just let me get dressed."

As he clothed himself in his typical leather armor, he tossed his head over his shoulder to talk to his new companion. "What happened, anyway?"

"We're under attack," Trask reported automatically.

"Well, I figured that out for myself."

"The Sith ambushed us. They're after Bastilla. I haven't seen her—oh, you're done. Well, I haven't seen her since they found us and it is our duty to keep her safe. Let's head out."

The hiss of the opening door made way for smoke to pour in the dorm. The pair ran through a hallway leading to the bridge. Neither man wanted to interrupt the steady beat of their footsteps or the occasional cough, so both kept silent. They stopped short at a door when Trask cleared his throat.

"I, uh, have some security codes that you'll need, so if you'll step aside I can just…" Before he could open the door, however, Landon had opened the door, sans codes. Trask raised his eyebrows in disbelief and awe.

"I've done this sort of thing before," Landon explained gruffly. "I can take care of myself."

A stray blaster shot hit the ground before them, leaving a black spot. Around a corner, a figure cast long shadows onto the walls. Judging by the clanking of metal shoes, the stoic, unmoving upper body, and gentle _slink_ of a blade on armor, it was a Sith on patrol. Landon grasped his gun instinctively. The footsteps grew quieter and the shadow faded out of sight. Trask motioned for them to move forward and peered around the bend. After a quick glance, he nodded at his partner.

"Just a patrolman," he whispered. "Now, I can take him out and you can stand behind me in case he has friends, or—"

Landon leapt out from the corner, landing on the balls of his feet, and drew his blaster out. He took aim and pulled the trigger. The red energy bolt hit its target on the first shot, melting through the back of the patrolman's armor. The Sith let out a cry and fell on his face. Landon shot again, this time at his head, to ensure death. The body relaxed beneath his shiny, silver shell.

Trask rolled his eyes. "So you really are as good as they say, huh?"

Landon bent down to the corpse and began searching for valuables. He pocketed a handful of credits and drew his victim's weapon. "If that's how you want to look at it, be my guest. But actually…" He tossed the vibroblade from one hand to the other. "I find myself inexplicably drawn to swords." Fastening the blade to his waist, he stood up to continue their journey.

As they walked, Trask's pestering persisted. "Well no wonder a simple scout like you got picked to guard a famous Jedi. Is there anything you can't do?"  
><em>Put up with incessant chatter?<em> He thought. "Well, I obviously couldn't save this Jedi woman from the Sith."

"To be fair, you were sleeping. But enough of that. Why have you let me keep talking? We have to find Bastilla and get her off this ship!"

Trask's enthusiasm, however, was interrupted by a tragic sight. Three Sith warriors cornered a lone Republic soldier before them. The soldier fearfully raised his arms in capitulation, but found no mercy. The Sith greeted his surrender with a spray of fire from their blasters, laughing behind their masks at the poor man's demise. Trask gasped, wounded.

"Those bastards! For the Republic!"

He let out a whoop, revealing their presence. Landon gritted his teeth at the resulting onslaught of attacks, expertly dodging each laser as he advanced. Before Trask could react, one of his foes fell decapitated on the ground. The armor-clad head rolled towards his feet. He glanced up at his companion, whose sword laid embedded in the neck of another Sith. Trask finished the job and shot the last Sith between the eyes.

"I didn't need help," Landon panted while holding his shoulder. "I had them."

"I had to avenge him. And then you nearly got shot."

"Yeah. Nearly."

The smell of burnt leather filled their nostrils. While sparring with one Sith, the other had grazed his arm with a blaster shot. Though he suffered minimal damage, the pain distracted him from the current task at hand: escape.

"Do you need a MedPac? I can't have my only helper injured."

"I'm _fine_," Landon growled. "Let's just find your Jedi and leave this place."

The next door they approached opened to reveal another fight. Two lightsabers whirred and hummed, sending sparks of heat flying when they collided. Their wielders, a dark and light Jedi, made slow, careful steps in combat. Landon and Trask kept their distance. The light Jedi, a woman, appeared to be pleading with her opponent. When she found no success, she closed her eyes and held her weapon to the side, exposing her torso. As her opponent lunged forward to attack her weak spot, he left himself vulnerable to her own attack. In sacrificing herself, the Jedi killed her opponent, sorrow etched on still face.

Trask walked away from the sad scene, but Landon lingered. A foreign emotion bubbled in his chest, a mixture between guilt and sadness, vengeance and helplessness. He shook off the new feeling and reunited with his partner.

"She was in Bastilla's party. If she was fighting off Sith, maybe Bastilla got away. Great! We're at the bridge."

Upon their arrival, they found two Sith soldiers, larger than any others they had yet fought. Landon immediately drew his vibroblade and sliced at one soldier's arm, having missed any vitals. His armor stopped it with a loud clink. They parried blows until they reached a stalemate, both men locked in combat with their swords straining against each other. Their muscles bulged in duress and the sound of metal grating on metal filled their ears. Landon ducked into a barrel roll, causing the Sith to stumble forward. He drove his blade into his falling foe, but not without garnering a bruised shoulder.

Meanwhile, Trask and the other soldier engaged in a blaster duel. They, too, reached a stalemate, neither man able to fatally shoot the other. Landon, seeing his companion's situation, crept up behind the remaining Sith and bludgeoned his head with the hilt of his sword. Satisfied, Trask shot the unconscious soldier as they moved through the bridge.

"Thanks," he muttered.

Landon grunted in response, though the sound turned to a gasp when they turned a corner. A dark Jedi stood between them and the next door. His dark brow cast a shadow over his even darker eyes and his skin, against his black armor in the artificial light of the ship, was so pale it looked nearly purple. He gave a sarcastic, grueling smile to the Republic soldiers as he drew out his weapon, a red lightsaber.

Trask drew his blaster, keeping his eyes fixed on the Dark Jedi. A single sound came from his throat, barely audible. _Go._

"What?" Landon asked, though he already began running.

"Go!" Trask screamed. The Sith turned around too late; he had already escaped him. Though out of range of his lightsaber, Landon could still hear the hiss as it slid through Trask's armor and melted his flesh. He made no noise in death, showed no weakness to his killer. Before he could think on the sacrifice for too long, however, Landon leapt through the door and tumbled into an open room. The door closed, sealing him off from his savior forever.

A small beeping noise came from his wrist. He glanced at his communicator to find the face of an anxious man.

"_This is Carth Onasi on your personal communicator. I've been tracking you through the ship and it looks like we're the last Republic survivors. Find me at the escape pods. There's an entire roomful of Sith between us, though, so be careful."_

Landon, annoyed and conflicted, gazed at the room beyond him. Milky windows revealed the figures of a dozen Sith. He felt a sense of doubt in his own abilities. Could he really take all of them on? A computer terminal caught his eye.

_Maybe I don't have to enter the room._

Normally used for security, the computer panel contained menus for cameras within the room. Swiftly hacking into the system, he managed to turn on the security system within the room. A bright light filled the room until the Sith were merely hazy silhouettes through the windows. With a crack like lightning, bolts of electricity flew from the cameras. Sith warriors crumbled under the attack, letting out cringe-worthy screams. He shuddered for a moment before logging off the computer. Upon entering the next room, he met the stench of burnt flesh and the awful realization that these, too, were humans.

_Just as much as Trask._

Beyond the room of dead soliders, Carth Onasi greeted Landon with a curt nod and directions to enter an escape pod. He complied, suddenly feeling the his injuries and recent experiences. Carth's no-nonsense attitude refreshed him, and he willingly climbed into the last escape pod.

"We're the last living Republic soldiers here," he explained as he prepared the pod to leave. "I can only hope that Bastilla escaped, too, because there's nothing else for us here."

The pod lurched, snapping Landon's head against the metal wall. With Carth's concerned face hovering over him, he faded into unconsciousness.


End file.
